MEC&F Expert Engineers : 06/17/15

Wednesday, June 17, 2015

And The More Corrupt County of New Jersey is: Passaic County



Incidences of unlawful acts committed by Wayne Township, Passaic County Employees
The unlawful acts of Wayne Township employees are also evidenced by the number of illegal activities committed by its employees over the years. 
For example, in September 2009, the former Township Attorney Mark J. Semeraro was arrested and charged with violating a restraining order.  He then was forced to resign from his position.
In September 2011, Jerry Bello resigned from the Wayne township Environmental Commission after it was discovered that he had been appointed to the board despite his criminal record.  Bello had been convicted in 1994 of extorting $2,000 from a small-business owner who applied for a loan from Paterson’s Economic Development Corporation.  Bello’s wife, Nadine Bello in fact was serving on the Municipal Council, the very entity that was aware that the Township Assessor over-assesses the properties. Nadine Bello never indicated that her husband was a convicted felon.  Mayor Vergano was aware or should have been aware of the felony convictions of Bello and he, in fact, re-appointed Bello to the Environmental Commission.
In 2007, the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice begun its investigation of Wayne Township, New Jersey. Wayne Township had delayed a mosque's building permits for several years, and then tried to use its eminent domain power to seize the land to leave it undeveloped. The Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice in 2007 filed a brief with the federal district court arguing that RLUIPA applied to the case. The court agreed, leading to a settlement between the mosque and the township.
Paul C. Cavaliere Jr., a former township attorney,  who in 1994 was sentenced to six months in jail, pleaded guilty to federal bribery and tax-evasion charges in one of New Jersey's worst cases of municipal corruption. The once-prominent lawyer was one of six onetime officials and four developers to be implicated in Messercola's scheme to extract illegal payoffs for development approvals. Cavaliere admitted helping former Mayor Louis V. Messercola disguise a $273,000 bribe as a real estate commission, keeping part of the bribe but giving Messercola the largest share.
Federal agents arrested Messercola in June 1988. The former mayor pleaded guilty to extorting $50,000 from a developer and was sentenced to 33 months in prison, then was sentenced to an additional 15 months upon admitting to his role in the $273,000 bribe scheme.

Ex-Council Candidate Arraigned on Theft Charge

Arlene Marchese and another woman allegedly stole more than $200K in insurance payments.
A one-time candidate for local office pleaded not guilty to theft in State Superior Court Monday, NorthJersey.com reported.
Arlene Marchese, 34, and Karen Wright, 42, of Wyckoff, were arraigned on charges they diverted more than $200,000 in insurance payments into their own private accounts. They were originally charged Sept. 26, the website reported.
Marchese was a Democratic candidate in 2011 for the 2nd Ward council seat. Wayne Democratic Chairman Ray Egatz replaced her for unspecified reasons.
Marchese’s phone number was not listed.
Both women face up to 10 years in state prison if convicted on the charges, NorthJersey.com reported. They are scheduled to return before Judge Gooden Brown for a status conference Feb. 4.

Unlawful Activities by Passaic County Sheriff Employees
In May 2012, Passaic County Sheriff’s Officer Rafael “Rae” Galan was indicted Tuesday on charges that he threatened a former colleague who had accused him of corruption.
Last year, The Star-Ledger published Galan’s name and photo in a three-part series about the widespread use of anabolic steroids in law enforcement. The newspaper found he was one of 248 officers and firefighters who obtained steroids, human growth hormone and other drugs with the aid of a crooked Jersey City physician, Joseph Colao.
The newspaper’s figure was based on records from a single mail-order pharmacy in Brooklyn. Colao, who died in 2007, is believed to have prescribed the drugs to hundreds of other officers and firefighters through pharmacies in New Jersey.
While anabolic steroids are legal with a valid prescription, The Star-Ledger found Colao routinely prescribed them when they were not medically necessary. Moreover, the officers used their government benefits to pay for the drugs, costing taxpayers millions of dollars.
In 2010, a records clerk at the county jail who is the former president of the clerical union at the Passaic County Sheriff's Department was arrested for stealing more than $23,000 in union funds, according to a report on NorthJersey.com. Valerie Jacalone, 53, of Passaic was taken into custody after reporting to work Tuesday at the county jail. She served as union president from July 2008 to July 2010 and is the daughter of Victor Jacalone, the former police chief for the City of Passaic, according to the report
Sheriff's Officer From Wayne, NJ Accused of Sex Abuse of Girls
In October 2012, Thomas Ingham charged with sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child. A long-serving Essex County Sheriff’s Officer from Wayne was charged Thursday with sexually abusing two juvenile girls, NorthJersey.com reported. Thomas Ingham, 48, an Essex County sheriff’s officer, was charged with sexually assaulting one girl and endangering the welfare of another. The girls reported the allegations to Wayne Police July 19, the website reported.
FREEHOLD, October 12, 2012 A central New Jersey police detective will give up his job after admitting that he requested sexual favors from a woman he had arrested late last year.
According to reports 33-year-old Philip Emanuele, a Brick Township resident who served with the Eatontown police force for the past eight years, pleaded guilty Wednesday to charges of criminal coercion and tampering with physical evidence.
Besides forfeiting his job, Emanuele is expected to get a probationary sentence when he's sentenced later this year. In return for his plea, Monmouth County prosecutors dropped two counts of official misconduct and one count of sexual assault.
Emanuele, a married father of two, sought the favors from the woman, who is in her 20s, after arresting her on a theft charge in December.
N.J. undersheriff who used county-owned generator for personal use resigns
GREEN — A Sussex County sheriff’s officer resigned this week after he was caught using a county-owned generator to provide power to his house, Sheriff Mike Strada said today.
Undersheriff George DeOld lost power at his home on Hibler Road in Green Township during Hurricane Sandy and had another sheriff’s officer deliver one of two emergency generators owned by the sheriff’s office to his home on Friday morning, Strada said.
A resident noticed the generator being delivered and sheriff’s officers recovered it from DeOld’s home a short time later, Strada said.
"It was an unfortunate incident and he has taken responsibility for his actions. He made the right choice by resigning," he said.
By using the county-owned generator for his personal use, DeOld violated an internal office regulation. Criminal charges will not be filed, Strada said. He declined to identify the officer who delivered the generator to DeOld’s home.
DeOld, who joined the sheriff’s office last year, was one of three undersheriffs in the 135-member office, serving as administrative undersheriff. He earned $97,000 annually.
He was a member of the Paterson Police Department from 1971 and 1998 and was later employed by the state Department of Treasury and the state Department of Community Affairs. In addition to his salary from the sheriff’s office, DeOld was collecting a $66,000 annual state pension from his previous positions.
Strada said the resignation would not affect DeOld’s pension status.
"It was wrong and he admitted it," the sheriff said, declining further comment.
A call to the county prosecutor’s office was not immediately returned.
A woman who answered the phone at DeOld’s home said "no comment" and immediately hung up.
A woman who answered the phone at DeOld’s home said “no comment” and immediately hung up the phone.

Unlawful Activities by Other New Jersey Officials
Nicholas Bissell was the District Attorney in Somerset County New Jersey. On Friday, May 31, 1996, he was convicted on all 30 counts of his federal indictment, two of the counts involving official misconduct in relation to the forfeiture of property from James Giuffre.
The charges against Bissell included a wide variety of fraud, as well as professional misconduct and corruption and threatening to have cocaine planted in the car of man with whom he had an argument.
Bissell was also convicted on both counts of the official misconduct charges involving forfeiture victim James Giuffre. Bissell was convicted of committing perjury in the separate civil suit filed against him by Giuffre, and of ordering subordinates to destroy Giuffre's written request for a lawyer.
On November 13, Nicholas Bissell, former D.A. of Somerset County, N.J., was scheduled to be sentenced on 30-counts of his federal indictment, 3 of the counts growing out of his official corruption in the handling of James Giuffre's forfeiture case. His sentencing was postponed.
On Monday, November 18, 1996, Bissell removed his electronic ankle bracelet and became a fugitive from justice. Authorities conducted a nationwide man hunt, and tracked him down to a casino hotel room in Laughlin, Nevada. At around 1:30 on Tuesday, November 26, U.S. Marshalls surrounded the room and tried to persuade Bissell to surrender. Bissell put a gun in his mouth and shot himself to death.
Trenton of Mayor Corruption
In July 2012, FBI agents staged a middle-of-the-night raid Wednesday at the home of Trenton's mayor, whose administration of the state's impoverished capital city has been marked by accusations of cronyism and reckless spending. They also searched the home of his brother and a convicted sex offender who was one of his biggest early campaign donors. Later, the federal officials charged the Mayor and other accomplishes with a number of corruption crimes.
The mayor of neighboring Hamilton Township, New Jersey's largest suburb, also is the target of federal investigators. Mayor John Bencivengo, a Republican, pleaded not guilty in federal court last week to charges of extortion and money laundering.
In September 2012, the U.S. Attorney filed charges against the Trenton Mayor and several accomplishes for corruption.

Toms River School Corruption
In September 2012, Calling it the "worst case of public corruption he has ever seen," a federal judge sentenced the disgraced former superintendent of Toms River Regional, Michael J. Ritacco, to 135 months – just over 11 years – in prison.
"This is the worst case of public corruption I’ve ever seen," Pisano said. Other cases of public corruption are "nickels and dimes compared to this."
Pisano sentenced Ritacco to 135 months on the first count of an indictment, and 60 months on the 19th count. He ruled the sentences will run concurrently.
Ritacco pleaded guilty April 5, 2012 to two of the 27 charges he was facing, and admitted his role in years of corruption at the school district, where as much as $2.5 million in bribes were allegedly passed between Ritacco, insurance brokers and intermediaries.


New Jersey internal records document widespread racial profiling of black and Hispanic motorists

By Fred Mazelis
2 December 2000
The release of 91,000 pages of internal records by the state of New Jersey reveal that a systematic policy of searching cars driven by blacks or Hispanics has been carried out for at least a decade. The statistics show that minority drivers, making up 13 percent of state motorists, accounted for more than 80 percent of those stopped by state troopers.
The mountain of official records constitutes the most damning evidence of crude official racism, fostered or accepted by top state officials of both the Democratic and Republican parties. The state's chief law enforcement officials knew about racial profiling since at least 1989 but refused to admit it until a report was issued in April 1999.
The official records consist of everything from police training manuals to thousands of pages of individual traffic tickets issued by state troopers. They have been compiled in 185 binders as well as on 15 CD-ROMs, which are being distributed to interested parties at a cost of $1,000.
The state police officially prohibited racial profiling, but according to a 1999 memo from Deputy Attorney General Debra Stone, “racial profiling exists as part of the culture.” Stone reported that veteran troopers functioned as “coaches” in showing new troopers how to carry out racial profiling. “Trooper after trooper has testified that coaches taught them how to profile minorities,” Stone wrote. “The coaches also teach this to minority troopers.”
These practices stretched back more than a decade. A 1987 state police training memo listed the following descriptions to assist police in finding possible drug couriers: Colombian males, Hispanic males, a Hispanic male and a black male together, or a Hispanic male and female.
Among the documents released by the state attorney general's office were numerous bitter complaints from motorists who had been stopped and in many cases singled out for abuse and humiliation. State troopers themselves, if they were off duty and were black or Hispanic, were not immune from being pulled over for “DWB”—driving while black. One such officer, a state police sergeant, wrote that he had been stopped 40 times by state troopers while off duty. “There were times when I was the fourth vehicle in a line of five exceeding the speed limit,” he wrote. “I was the only one stopped. It doesn't take long to realize that you (the minority) are the choice of the day.”

18-year old killed in head-on crash with a pickup truck, suspected drunken driver arrested in Palmdale, CA


Daniel Colato was at the wheel of this 2004 Honda Accord, according to the California Highway Patrol. (Photo by LUIS MEZA)
Daniel Colato was at the wheel of this 2004 Honda Accord, according to the California Highway Patrol. (Photo by LUIS MEZA)

PALMDALE, CALIFORNIA

A head-on collision between a car and a pickup truck in Palmdale left a young man dead and a suspected drunken driver in custody facing a possible murder charge, authorities said.

Eighteen-year-old Daniel Colato of Palmdale died at the scene of the crash, which occurred around 11:40 p.m. Monday, June 15, on 30th Street East near East Avenue Q in Palmdale, according to a California Highway Patrol report.

Daniel Colato was driving a 2004 Honda Accord southbound on 30th Street East when a northbound 2005 Ford F-350 pickup truck allegedly crossed into the southbound lane of 30th Street East, “causing a head-on collision between the vehicles,” the CHP report states.


Galo Nelson Campana of Palmdale was driving this 2005 Ford F-350 pickup truck, which came to rest on its side. (LUIS MEZA)
Galo Nelson Campana of Palmdale was driving this 2005 Ford F-350 pickup truck, which came to rest on its side. (LUIS MEZA)

Daniel Colato was killed, and his passenger, 22-year-old Kayla Colato of Palmdale, was taken to a hospital for treatment of major injuries, the CHP report states.

The pickup truck’s driver, 36-year-old Galo Nelson Campana of Palmdale, was allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol, according to the CHP report.


Campana, who sustained minor injuries, was booked at the Palmdale Sheriff’s Station on suspicion of murder and held on $1 million bail, the CHP reported.

Passenger killed after driver falls asleep and crashes his car on way from Wendover back to Salt Lake City, Utah

JUNE 17, 2015
 
TOOELE COUNTY, Utah

The Utah Highway Patrol is stressing the importance of seat belts after an accident that killed one person on I-80 Wednesday morning.  We also stress the importance of not driving if you are sleepy - you will either kill yourself or cause the death of somebody else;  just take a break or let someone else drive.



Tooele SL Co rollover traffic

Troopers said friends and family were driving back to Salt Lake City from Wendover when the tired driver fell asleep and veered off the road on I-80 westbound at the Tooele County and Salt Lake County line just before 7 a.m.

The passenger in his 30s who died was lying down in the backseat, not wearing his seat belt, when the car went off the road and flipped over a barrier.

Officials said a second car with family members was driving back with them but no one was injured in that vehicle.

The freeway was at a standstill until after 8 a.m. when crews were able to clear the scene.

The names of those involved have not been confirmed at this time.

The killers within: Active and Former Soldiers Commit a Large number of Murders in the United States

Treating Killer Soldier with a Feather Glove: Moronic DA won't seek death penalty for soldier accused of killing, mutilating, burning teen girlfriend's mother

June 17, 2015


The killers within: The statistics show that Active and Former Soldiers Commit a Large number of Murders in the United States


Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin does not plan to seek the death penalty for a soldier accused of killing the mother of his teen girlfriend, then working with the girl to dispose of the woman's body.

Martin said there are no aggravating factors in the case against Caleb Barnes, a 21-year-old Army soldier who had been stationed at Fort Meade, Maryland. Aggravating factors can include killing someone in the commission of another felony, or if a defendant has a history of felony convictions.

Barnes and Jamie Silvonek, 14, were in Lehigh County Court on Wednesday morning for arraignments on charges connected with the killing of Silvonek's mother, Cheryl.

Prosecutors say Barnes brutally stabbed the elder Silvonek in the neck in the early morning of March 15 after she repeatedly tried to break up the couple, going so far as to show Barnes her daughter's passport to convince him of the girl's age.

Silvonek and Barnes are each charged with homicide, conspiracy, abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence. The pair had separate formal arraignments Wednesday.

Prosecutors usually file notice of aggravating circumstances -- indications they will seek the death penalty if a person is convicted of first-degree murder -- on or before formal arraignments.

Prosecutors could not seek the death penalty against Silvonek; the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the death penalty for defendants under the age of 18 is cruel and unusual punishment.

Attorneys are scheduled to meet next month to determine if Silvonek will be tried as an adult. Defense attorney John Waldron is seeking to have her case sent to juvenile court.

Pretrial hearings are scheduled for August, but a trial date won't be set until Lehigh County Judge Maria Dantos decides on where Silvonek's case will end up.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Jeff Dimmig said prosecutors have received sealed medical records from the military for Barnes, who was on leave when the killing occurred.

Dimmig said his office is waiting on a search warrant before opening the records, so he is not sure if they include any type of mental health records.
Asked if prosecutors requested any type of criminal or infraction records from the military related to Barnes, Dimmig said, "That's been part of our investigation."

Prosecutors alleged the couple plotted to kill both of Silvonek's parents as a way to be together. They said Jamie Silvonek was 13 but told Barnes she was 17, and the two communicated daily since they met.
 
Authorities say Cheryl Silvonek first met Barnes on March 6. When she learned the soldier was a 20-year-old, she told her daughter the relationship had to end, authorities say.

Martin released text messages between the couple that indicated they spoke for hours about killing Cheryl Silvonek before she was fatally stabbed in a car in the driveway of the family's Randi Lane home in Upper Macungie Township.

A friend of Silvonek testified at the pair's preliminary hearing that they discussed killing Silvonek's parents over the phone.

"It was something along the lines of, like, 'What if my parents were killed,'" the girl testified on May 14. "I told her it wasn't a smart idea at all."

Police say after driving to a concert and back on March 15, a confrontation occurred between Barnes and Cheryl Silvonek. Barnes strangled Silvonek as she begged for her life while her daughter watched, police say.

After the killing, prosecutors said Barnes and Jamie Silvonek drove to a Wal-Mart to get supplies and returned to the house. Cheryl Silvonek's body was then driven to a rural area in South Whitehall Township and set on fire, prosecutors say. Barnes and Jamie Silvonek then dumped the blood-laden car in a nearby pond before walking back to the Silvonek home, authorities say.

Arlington, Texas officials report on fracking fluid blowout, blaming the drilling company for "unacceptable behavior."



JUNE 17, 2015


ARLINGTON, TEXAS


 Two months ago, 100 homes in Arlington had to be evacuated as fracking fluid spilled out of a drilling site onto the city streets.

Now we know officially what happened, why it happened, and why Arlington officials are blaming the drilling company for "unacceptable behavior."

A series of video recordings obtained by News 8 shows the scene behind the walls of a fracking site 600 feet from a cluster of homes in the state's seventh largest city. In the incident, 42,800 gallons of fracking fluid — boiling up from thousands of feet underground — spewed into the streets and into Arlington storm sewers and streams.

Nearby residents and Arlington officials feared the worst. Now, two months later, fire officials have concluded their investigation.

"Clearly there was a release of unpermitted materials into the stormwater system," said Arlington Fire Chief Don Crowson as he addressed Arlington City Council members on Tuesday.

The good news, according to Crowson: Despite numerous toxic substances being released into the environment, tests show it was not in amounts that did significant damage to the environment.

The bad news? He said the drilling company mishandled the spill.

"For my concerns, the main issue I articulated to you a few months ago was the delayed notification of 911," Crowson said. "It's not acceptable."

According to the report, Vantage Energy first contacted 911 nearly two hours after fracking water first started to spill. What's more, the call to 911 came not from the site, but from corporate headquarters in Pennsylvania.

"This is unacceptable behavior," said City Council member Robert Rivera. "The citizens of Arlington do not appreciate the lack of ability to control the site."

The official cause of the spill at a site adjacent to Lake Arlington Baptist Church is listed as equipment failure. Vantage Energy was issued a citation and has agreed to reimburse the city $84,000.

But this was not included in the city's report: Records uncovered by News 8 of another 1,500-gallon spill at the same site one month earlier.

Arlington Resident Kim Feil said the two incidents one month apart reinforce her fears that drilling so close to homes is not safe.

"I just assumed this was a residential area and it would be free from industrial hazardous operations," Feil said. "Now we see it's not."

In the meantime, drilling operations remain shut down and will not resume until the city does a final inspection and the folks across the street and those affected are given official notification.

New Jersey's "Finest" at Work: NJ cop kills ex-wife on street with daughter in his car


 June 17, 2015
 
A shooting on Ridge Ave in Asbury Park reportedly involved a Neptune police officer. The suspect (center) is arrested —June 16, 2015. (Photo: Bob Bielk/Asbury Park Press)
 
ASBURY PARK, N.J. — As his 7-year-old daughter watched Tuesday from the front seat of his SUV, a New Jersey police officer gunned down his ex-wife on the street in front of horrified witnesses, authorities said.

Sgt. Philip Seidle, 51, of Neptune Township police has been charged with murder, unlawful possession of a weapon and endangering his daughter's welfare in connection with the the death of Tamara Seidle, also 51, said Mark LeMieux, first assistant prosecutor in Monmouth County, N.J.  The couple, who divorced May 27, had nine children ranging in age from 7 to 24.

The fatal shooting began around 11:30 a.m. ET when Seidle, who was off duty, chased his ex-wife as she was driving through the streets here, LeMieux said.

As Tamara Seidle was trying to flee, her vehicle crashed into a parked car. Philip Seidle then swerved his Honda Pilot into hers, got out of the car, pulled out his handgun and approached her car, immediately firing into the driver's side several times, LeMieux said.

The officer ran out of the car, yelling at his ex-wife inside about child-custody battles, witnesses said.

"The guy was in the middle of the street," said Michael Terrell, a witness who was working at Campbell's Door Supply Co . "He was saying, 'I'm tired of going to court.' "

Once Philip Seidle stopped shooting, he put his gun to his head and started walking around her vehicle, police said. Officers, who were nearby investigating an unrelated motor-vehicle accident, started talking to Philip Seidle and got him to allow them to take his daughter out of his SUV.

As she was taken away, Philip Seidle then walked to the front of his wife's car and fired into the windshield.

"It was shocking," said Terrell, a Neptune Township resident.

He then put his gun to his head again. For the next 30 minutes, officers tried to get him to surrender.

"Put the gun down," Trina Poyser of Asbury Park, recalled the responding officers saying. "It's not worth it."

"My kids, my kids!" he yelled. "I'm not going to see them anymore."

He was taken into custody without further incident. Philip Seidel has been with the Neptune Township Police Department for 22 years and earned more than $125,000 last year.

"He was a well-respected cop in the area," said Dianna Harris, a township resident and zoning board member. "Nobody knows what triggered this, and that's what makes it so sad."  Of course these types of statements are pure BS.  New Jersey cops are real law breakers, liars, crooks and killers.

Neighbor Linda Jones, who witnessed the incident, said she knows Philip Seidle.

"It looks like he just snapped," she said. "I'm sad for the wife. I'm sad for the children, I'm sad for him."

Crash causes fuel spill from an 18-wheeler carrying hydrochloric acid, closes northbound West Port Arthur Road in Texas

Jun 17, 2015

 PORT ARTHUR, TEXAS

 The northbound side of West Port Arthur Road at HWY 365 was closed around Noon Wednesday while crews cleaned up fuel spilled from an 18-wheeler after an accident.

A spokesperson for the Texas Department of Transportation told 12News a vehicle ran a red light and struck an 18-wheeler carrying Hydrochloric Acid. 


 None of the acid spilled on the roadway, but fuel from the truck leaked making it necessary for a hazmat crew to clean up the mess.

No major injuries were reported.

As of 1:19 p.m. the northbound lanes were still closed.

Hiwassee River re-opened after chlorine leak at Olin plant in TN


 


 JUNE 17, 2015

CHARLESTON (WRCB) - 

The Hiwassee River has been re-opened to river traffic, according to the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency.


Earlier Wednesday morning, a chlorine spill at Olin Chemical near the Hiwassee River in Charleston Wednesday morning temporarily shout down river traffic, according to Troy Spence, Bradley County EMA director.


The measure was taken as a precaution.


Spence tells Channel 3 there is no danger to the public.


Olin is checking their lines and removing chemicals to determine the source of the leak.


No employees were injured.


Olin Chlor Alkali later issued the following statement:


“Earlier today, we experienced an unintended chlorine release at out Charleston Facility. There have been no exposures or injuries among our employees, all of whom are safe and carrying out their duties. We are working closely with Bradley and McMinn County Management Authorities and supporting its measures to ensure the public is not affected, which included temporarily suspending traffic on the Hiwassee River, which has been reopened.”

Olin's Charleston facility was built in 1960 and produces bleach, caustic soda, chlorine, hydrochloricacid, hydrogen and potassium hydroxide for the paper, textiles, vinyl products, water treatment, food processing and other industries.

Tanker truck overturns on U.S. 158, in NC, spilling hexamine, driver injured







JUNE 17, 2015

WALKERTOWN, NC

 State highway patrol officers are trying to determine what caused a tanker truck to overturn on U.S. 158 near Goodwill Church Road Wednesday afternoon, causing its chemical load to spill onto the road.
The tanker was carrying a mixture of hexamine and water, said Command Officer Ken Kennedy with Belews Creek Fire and Rescue.

Hexamine is a chemical used to make other chemical compounds such as plastics, pharmaceuticals and rubber additives, according to several websites. It also can be used as a food additive and to produce plastic explosives.


Battalion Chief Sandy Shepherd of the Winston-Salem Fire Department said the chemical has a flammable component, but the batch the tanker was hauling was diluted and didn’t pose a fire threat.


It appeared the tanker truck ran off the highway about 3:20 p.m., struck a tree and overturned, authorities said.


The driver of the tanker, who wasn’t identified, was taken to a hospital, as was a Winston-Salem firefighter.


Assistant Chief Harry Brown said that the firefighter, who wasn’t identified, scratched his face, risking contamination. The firefighter was decontaminated at the scene but taken to Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center as a precaution. The driver was conscious and talking after the accident, authorities said.


Traffic was detoured in the area as crews worked to clean up the spill. 


Winston-Salem firefighters assisted Walkertown, Piney Grove and Belews Creek firefighters to contain the spill.


Crews from A&D Environmental Services Inc. of Archdale removed most of the chemical mixture from the overturned tanker. Two tow trucks then rolled the tanker back on its 18 wheels.


Shaniqua Michaux, who lives on Goodwill Church Road, watched as nearly 20 emergency vehicles responded to the crash.


“I think it’s crazy,” Michaux said of the wreck.


The N.C. Highway Patrol is investigating the wreck.

TANKER TRUCK OVERTURNS IN FORSYTH COUNTY, SC, SPILLS HEXYLENE GLYCOL; 2 FIRE FIGHTERS HOSPITALIZED DUE TO CHEMICAL EXPOSURE





JUNE 17, 2015

FORSYTH COUNTY, N.C. 

Two fire fighters were hospitalized after being exposed to chemicals while responding to an overturned tanker truck.

The accident happened shortly after 3 p.m. on U.S. 158 near Goodwill Church Road.

According to the Winston-Salem Professional Fire Fighters Association, the truck was carrying Hexylene Glycol.

Winston-Salem Fire Department HazMat responded to the accident as well as multiple fire crews.

According to NCDOT, U.S. 158 is currently closed in both directions. It is unclear when the road will reopen.

The identities of the fire fighters taken to the hospital have not been released.

The Potential Acute Health Effects of Hexylene Glycol are:

Hazardous in case of skin contact (irritant), of eye contact (irritant), of inhalation. Slightly hazardous in case of skin contact (sensitizer), of ingestion.

Potential Chronic Health Effects:

Slightly hazardous in case of skin contact (sensitizer). CARCINOGENIC EFFECTS: Not available. MUTAGENIC EFFECTS:
Not available. TERATOGENIC EFFECTS: Not available. DEVELOPMENTAL TOXICITY: Not available. The substance may be toxic to kidneys, the nervous system, liver. Repeated or prolonged exposure to the substance can produce target organs damage